"I am but a simple purveyor of words. A story teller one might say. For the right number of coins, I shall create you a world of your very own, where you will be hailed as its hero, its ruler….its god. Cross me, however, and you shall be cast down as its villain, the lowest of creatures. Your final fate will be most befitting…and unfortunate." - Michael L. Turner

Tuesday, October 9, 2012

The Long Road into Night #9

Do you remember what happened on the 9th
day?Do you remember anything?

You should at least know that the wolf was
smarter than you… much smarter.

How far did you get?How far did you think you would get?

Only fools entered the forest, but how could
you know that.Still… never before has a
fool made it past the third day.The wisest
of men have been known to perish barely into the first.Now it would seem that a truly exceptional
fool has made it much further.That is…
until she found you.

You had planned to circle back to the road, far
away from the wolf.It might have worked,
but you were blind in the forest.The
moon barely lit your way.Also it was a
constant struggle to keep your own feet under you.They tried to stumble with every step on the
uneven ground.Exhaustion now chased you
with even more determination than the wolf had.Maybe if you weren’t so tired, you would have noticed that at some point
your long left turn, you made a right.

It appears that someone should have gotten a
little rest.

By the time you realized that you were lost,
it was too late.The ground exploded
around you, with leaves and debris shooting up into the air.Then you were falling.You felt the smack earth, and then you were
dragged from it.The trap had been
sprung, and with both legs tied, you found yourself dangling upside down from a
tree.

“My… what a precious thing has come our way,”
said a scratchy woman’s voice, from somewhere in the dark woods.Direction was a difficult thing to judge when
upside down, and swinging from a rope.“Very
precious indeed,” she cackled lightly.

You suddenly recall that laughter, now thrice
heard.

“Sleep,” the scratchy voice says, and a deep darkness
fell over your eyes.